Millar Western has announced that it will indefinitely curtail operations at its Quesnel River Pulp mill in Quesnel, British Columbia, a decision that leaves the central-interior community facing the loss of a major industrial employer. Earlier in August, the company had described the shutdown as temporary. The new announcement removes that qualifier and offers no date for a restart.
In explaining the decision, the company pointed to market challenges and to tariffs on Chinese exports, which have weighed on demand for the pulp produced at the Quesnel facility. No confirmed buyer for the mill has been reported, and there is no confirmed plan to restart it.
Quesnel Mayor Coralee Oakes said city council is deeply disappointed by the announcement. She said the closure will be felt by workers, contractors and their families, many of whom are already contending with the pressures of higher living costs. Oakes said affordability concerns make the closure especially difficult for households that depended on the mill's wages and the business it generates.
The city has begun responding on several fronts. Oakes has spoken with premier-elect Lorne Doerkson and with Member of Parliament Todd Doherty, and meetings are planned for this week. The City of Quesnel intends to activate provincial transition teams to help affected residents. Oakes has also called for support comparable to the federal aid that eastern Canada's auto, steel and aluminum sectors have received, and the city wants affected residents to have access to training opportunities that could help them move into new work.
The municipality also has questions for the company about the curtailment letter it issued, and says it is still working to understand the financial consequences. The mill returns grant-in-lieu revenue to the city, which the city estimates at between $100,000 and $150,000. That amount is roughly equivalent to a 1 per cent shift in the municipal tax base. The wider trickle-down effects on other city revenues are still being assessed, and the city has not yet quantified the full financial impact.
The closure also raises questions beyond the city's boundaries. The impact on the provincial target of 45 million cubic metres of fibre harvest remains unclear, as does the effect on BC Hydro. Those topics were raised in discussions alongside the mill's future, but no decisions on them have been announced. For now, the company has not said whether it will sell the facility, and the city's priority is supporting the workers and families who will bear the immediate consequences of the shutdown.